The breeze coming in from outside was nice, but even it couldn’t cancel out the blazing fire I needed to work this piece of iron. When I finished this one, I’d be able to take a break and cool down a bit. Technically, I could’ve paused any time I wanted since I was on schedule with the order and I was my own boss, but part of what made me successful at what I did was because I stuck with things until they were done.

I might’ve inherited a bit of my family’s workaholic tendencies, but at least I was working at something I loved. Grandfather had always said that’s what my dad had done. Instead of joining the family business, Dad had become a journalist because that had been the only thing he’d ever wanted to do. When I’d been introduced to wood-working, I’d finally understood what Grandfather had been talking about. I’d always been decent in school, and I could’ve gone to college if I’d wanted to but working with my hands had appealed to me in a way nothing else had. When I had a project, it consumed me; and drowned out everything else. It was the only thing that had ever been able to clear my mind so completely.

Since it was just me and Annie and Shane out here, I didn’t have to worry about it taking time away from anyone else.

I inspected the intricate loops I’d just finished making. If anything was wrong with it, I’d have to go back and re-do it. I compared it to one of the other finished products, then looked at the original design. All three matched. Perfect.

The familiar sizzle of red-hot metal meeting water mixed with the roar of the fire. These were the sounds of home. Not cars and people and traffic and construction and everything else that came with living in a city. Boston hadn’t been a bad place to grow up, but I preferred where I was now.

I went through the process of making sure things were in their proper places, the routine virtually automatic after all these years. The blacksmith I’d apprenticed under had told me about a farrier he’d known who’d stepped outside for something without shutting things down, thinking he’d be gone only a minute, and he’d ended up losing half a building and burned the shit out of his arm. Even if I only meant to go outside to cool off, I went through every step, just in case.

I hung up my apron and headed outside, pulling my sweat-soaked shirt over my head as I went. I closed my eyes as the cool air hit me. I loved what I did, but if I could’ve done it with a little less heat, I wouldn’t have minded. The sun was warm today, but it was a pleasant warmth, the kind that promised spring was on its way.

I opened my eyes and refocused my mind on what else I needed to do today. The scones would sit for the day and then I’d inspect them again before taking a picture and sending it to my client. If he was satisfied, I’d box them up and ship them out. The larger project he wanted was on my list, but I wouldn’t be working on that today. I had some basic stuff of my own to do. I wasn’t a farrier, but I’d done a bit of training under one, enough to take care of Shane and Annie. I had a pile of other ‘to fix’ stuff sitting on a table in the barn. I’d gotten behind during the time I’d been in Boston, and I hadn’t quite gotten caught up yet. I’d made the shoes for both horses, but that was about it.

That’s when I remembered that I’d made the shoes but hadn’t taken them to the barn. I often made supplies ahead of time, using extra iron or some extra time while I waited for something else to finish. Instead of keeping them in the forge, I stashed them behind the building in watertight containers. It kept them out of my way and all together in an easily accessible space.

I walked around back, compiling a mental list of the order I wanted to get things done, but before I reached the containers, I saw movement over by the pine trees that sat at the corner of my property. My mind flipped through all the possible animals it could be. I’d gotten the occasional antelope and even a coyote a time or two, but the figure didn’t move like any of those. Then it came around one of the trees, and I realized it was a person.

I scowled, my temper flaring to the surface. What the fuck was wrong with people? What made them think they could come wandering onto my property like it was some public park or something? I’d never had this problem before, but two times in two weeks, I’d had people acting like they had every right to go wherever they wanted.

I stomped over, my annoyance increasing with each step. Within a few yards, I realized it was a woman, but that didn’t make me any less pissed. When I was finally in hearing distance, I spoke.

“Who the fuck are you?”

Probably not the best way to approach things, but I wasn’t the person at fault here. If she had a problem with me being rude, then she shouldn’t have been trespassing to begin with.

She stumbled as she turned around, but caught herself, and I knew she hadn’t seen me before now. She looked vaguely familiar, but I couldn’t place her, and I didn’t particularly care to try.

“Are you deaf? What the hell are you doing on my property?”

Her eyebrows went up, answering my half-rhetorical question about her hearing, and I had the sudden impression that I’d crossed some sort of line. I folded my arms over my chest. This wasn’t on me. She wasn’t supposed to be here.

“I’m not deaf.” Her voice was even, no trace of annoyance at either my questions or my tone. “I’m here because I wanted to look at the pine trees.”

“You wanted to – what?” I stared at her. Why would someone wander onto my property to look at pine trees?

“Pine needles are an excellent source of vitamin C,” she explained. “Of course, you don’t want to eat them, but they can be made into a tea that’s quite palatable.”

“Who are you?” I asked again, but I didn’t sound angry anymore. I was too confused.

“Brea Chaise,” she said, coming out from under the trees. “And you’re Blake Hunter.”

“At least you know whose property you’re on.”

Again, that raised eyebrow, this time accompanied by a quirk of her lips. “Yes, I do. And I was invited.”

“I sure as hell did not invite you here. This is my property. Mine. You need to go.”

If my order surprised her, she didn’t show it. In fact, she didn’t show anything other than her obnoxious amusement. She looked down, then from side to side, as if she was trying to find something on the ground. After a moment, she took a few steps to her right, crouched down, and moved aside a clump of tall grass. A little blue flag stuck up from the ground.

“Property line flag,” she said. “Which means I was never on your property. Hence, your demand for me to leave isn’t applicable.”

Hence? Who the fuck said hence? Or applicable for that matter?

Suddenly, I realized why she looked familiar and where I’d heard her name before.

“You own that goofy store in town.”

She went still for a moment, and her smile faded from her eyes even though it stayed on her mouth.

Now that I was looking at her mouth, I couldn’t ignore how nice it was. A little fuller than average, but I liked that. In fact, the more I looked at her, the more I liked what I saw. A firm, athletic body that was both strong and feminine. One that could take anything I could dish out.

And then my eyes returned to her face, and I saw she wasn’t smiling at all anymore.

Dammit.